Railroad-tie.



H. A. SNOW.

RAILROAD TIE.

APPLICATION FILED DEO.18, 191s.

Patented se ma, 1914.

2 SKEETSSHEET 1.

7HE NORRIS PETERS c0., PNOTO-LITHO.. WASHINGIDIII D H. A. SNOW RAILROAD TIE.

APPLIGATION FILED DEG. 1a, 1913.

Patented Sept. 15, 1914.

2 SHEETSSHEET 2.

WW w m THE NORRIS PETERS 60.. Pnonlurncu WASHINGTON. D. C.

rinrrn srns rarnn orrron.

HENRY A. SNOW, OF DENVER, COLGRADO, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF T0 GEORGE E.

TRALLES, 01* DENVER, COLORADO.

RAILROAD-TIE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 15, 1914.

Application filed December 18, 1913. Serial No. 807,511.

T 0 (iii whom it may concern Be it known that I, HENRY A. Snow, a citizen of the United States, residing at Denver, in the county of Denver and State of Colorado, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Railroad-Ties; and l: do hereby declare the following to be full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to improvements in railroad ties, and is particularly concerned with ties of the metallic type.

The main and primary object of the present invention is the provision of a tie of composite character, including in its con struction a metallic body, whereby the advantage of long life and maximum strength is obtained with a minimum amount of metal, and resilient seats for the rails, in the form of wooden supports, through the medium of which the ad*-.*antage of elasticity is also procured.

A further object of the present invention is the provision of a tie of the character specified wherein the resilient seats for the rails are so formed as to be readily shifted in position, or entirely changed, without the necessity of removing the whole tie from beneath the rails, thus providing a thoroughly practical tie for use in tunnels and on bridges where the walls and trestles greatly interfere with the changing of full-length ties.

The invention further aims to provide an improved composite tie in which the parts are so organized and related that the resilient supports for the rails are protected to the fullest possible extent from the action of the elements, thereby insuring maximum wear and preventing rapid deterioration.

It is also a further object of the present invention to provide a composite tie the metallic portions of which may be stamped from sheet metal with the highest degree of economy in the amount of metal required.

Having these general objects in view and others which will appear as the nature of th improvements is better understood, the invention consists substantially in the novel construction, combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawin s, and pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawings-Figure 1 is a side elevatlon of a composite railway tie constructed in accordance with the present invention. Fig. 2 is a top plan view thereof. Fig. 3 is a transverse sectional view on the line 33,

Fi 1. F i 4 is a similar view on the line 4-4, F1 1. Flg. 5 is an end elevation of the tie. F 1g. 6 1s a side elevation of the inside locking member. Fig. 7 is an end elevation thereof. Fig. 8 is a plan view of the stamped blank from which the metallic body of the tie is formed. Fig. 9 is a plan of the blank employed in the formation of the inside locking member. Fig. 10 is a fragmentary elevation of one end of the tie illustrating the application thereto of electrical insulators to adapt the invention for use in railways equipped with electrical signaling devices.

Referring in detail to the accompanying drawings, the numeral 1 designates the metallic body of the hereindescribed tie. This body is formed by being stamped from sheet metal, preferably sheet steel of the proper thickness, say, from three-sixteenths to one quarter of an inch, more or less, and said body is substantially trough-shaped, including a bottom 2 and vertical parallel sides 3. The bottom 2 is provided with a longitudi nally-extending groove 4, by means of which the bottom of said body is strengthened, and 7 this groove also serves to drain the body of any moisture that may accumulate therein. To this end the groove 4 is provided with a plurality of openings 5 at proper intervals through which the moisture may pass from said groove. These openings are located preferably near the ends of the body 1, as illustrated in Fig. 8, and at points beneath th rails and their block supports, to be now referred to.

Arranged within the body 1, and positioned in each end portion thereof, is a wooden block 6. These blocks provide seats for the rails 7 and by reason of the blocks being formed of wood the same are resilient, and thus elastically support the rails 7. In order that the blocks 6 may be properly held within the body 1, and at the same time protected against the action of the elements, a retaining plate 8 is formed integral with each end of one of the sides 8. Each of the retaining plates 8 is bent over the top portion of the tie, and its free edge is provided with a depending holding flange 9 that embraces the opposite side 3 of the body 1. In the bent position of the retaining plates 8 they extend over the outer ends of the blocks 6, and tiereby protect the surface of said blocks, and at the outer end of each of said retaining plates 8 is a depending stop 10 which lies at the outer end of the adjacent block 6, protecting said end, and at the same time also preventing any outward displacement or said block. The inner ends of the retaining plates 8 are bent slightly upwardly to provide locking flanges 11, and said flanges are designed to restupon the rail bases, and thus hold the rails upon the wooden blocks 6. To retain the locking flanges 11 of the plates 8 in contact with the rails a spike 12, of the usual character, may be driven through said flanges into said blocks, and by the engagement of the spikes with the blocks is apparent that the locking flanges 11 will be maintained in holding relation to the bas flanges of the rails.

Located at the inner sides of the rails 7, and cooperating with the retaining plates 8, both in protecting the wooden blocks 6 and holding the rails 7 upon said blocks, is a pair of locking slides 13, one being employed for each rail. At the side edges of each of said slides 13 is a pair of parallel guide flanges 1 1, and each of said guide flanges receives an outwardly-extending flange 15, said flanges 15 being arranged in pairs at points adjacent to the inner edges of the rails 7. Each of the locking slides 13 has a depending stop 16 extending down over the inner end of each of the blocks 6, protecting said end, and also preventing inward movement of the block, and to hold the locking slides 13 in this position, a transversely-extending locking bolt 17 is passed through the sides of the body 1, and secured by a suitable nut 18, one of said bolts 17 being employed with each of the locking slides 13. By positioning the bolts 17 at the points noted, it is evident that the slides 13 will have no inward movement, the depending stops 16 being engaged by said oolts in such inward movement. Each of the slides 13 is also provided with an up wardly-inclined locking flange 19, said flanges 19 extending over and embracing the inner base flanges of the rails 7, and said flanges 19 cotiperate with the locking flanges 11 to hold the rails 7 on the blocks 6. The usual spike 20 is driven through each of the flanges 19 into the blocks 6, and by this expedient the flanges 19 are maintained in holding relation to the base flanges of the rails.

lVhen the hereindescribed tie is to be used in roads equipped with electrical block signal systems, it is necessary that provision be made to prevent short-circuiting of the current through the ties. To this end a from which the body 3 and the locking slides 13 are formed. By referring to the former figure it will be observed that the sides 3,

the bottom 1, the retaining plates 8, the flan es 9, and the flanges 15 are perfectly flat, but by proper manipulation are each bent to the form shown in the other figures of the drawings. This is also true of the locking slide 13, illustrated in Fig. 9. It will be observed, however, that the blank, either before or after stamping, may be subjected to a rolling process in order to form the drainage groove 4 therein.

In assembling the hereindescribed tie, it is assumed, or" course, that the body portion thereof has been bent to the trough shape indicated. This places the sides 3 in parallelism so as to receive the resilient blocks 6. The dimensions of these blocks are such that they will snugly fit between the sides 3, and their height will be no greater than the height of said sides, and it so, only imperceptibly higher, in order to insure the rails 7 resting on the blocks. l/Vith the retaining plates 8 bent over so that their flanges 9 engage the opposite side 3, it will seen that said plates cover the outer ends of the wooden blocks 6, and by reason of the flanges 9 spreading of the sides 3, at the outer extremities of the body 1, will be prevented. The holding flanges 11 of the plates 8 are, or" course, spiked down to the block 6, as previously described, after which tne locking slides 13 are placed in position. In doing this the guide flanges 1% thereof are caused to slide along the flanges 15 of the body until the holding flanges 19 are over the inner base flanges of the rails 7, and when so positioned the locking flanges 19 are spiked down to the wooden blocks 6. The fastening bolts 17 are then placed in position through the sides 3 of the tie body, and fastened by their securing nuts 18, and this positioning of said bolts 17 not only prevents inward movement of the slides 13, in the event that the spikes 2O become loosened or displaced, but said bolts also hold the sides 3 of the tie body against spreading. With the flanges 11 and 19 engaged with the base flanges of the rails 7, it is obvious that the latter are firmly held upon the wooden blocks 6, and while the metallic body of the tie insures strength and long life, the wooden blocks 6 aflord resilient supports for the rails, giving the proper elasticity to the rails which is requisite in railroad ties. Furthermore, these resilient supports enable the rails to expand and contract under changes in climatic conditions, and there is no liability of breakage of the parts by reason. of such expansion and contraction. With the rails embraced by the holding flanges 11 and 19 the rails are pre vented tipping or spreading, and inasmuch as the retaining plates 8 and locking slides 13 incase the top surfaces and ends of the blocks 6 these blocks are protected against the action of the elements and rapid deterioration of the blocks effectually overcome. Should it be necessary, however, to renew the blocks, or to shift the positions thereof, this can be readily accomplished without removing the whole tie from beneath the rails. This provides a tie structure especially adapted for use in tunnels and on bridges where the walls and trestles greatly interfere with the changingof full length ties. While the retaining plates 8 are illustrated and described as at the outside of the rails, and the locking slides 13 at the inner sides thereof, it will be obvious that their arrangement may be reversed without aflecting their utility or changing their function.

aving thus described the invention, what is claimed as new, and desired to be secured by Letters Patent, is:

1. In a railroad tie, the combination with a trough-shaped body, of a rail support arranged therein, a retaining plate carried by one side of the tie body and adapted to engage one of the base flanges of a rail, said retaining plate extending over a portion of the rail support to hold the latter within the body, and a locking member arranged at the opposite side of the rail and adapted to engage the other base flange of the rail, said retaining plate and locking member cooperating to hold the rail upon said support.

2. In a railroad tie, the combination with a trough-shaped body, of a rail support arranged therein, a retaining plate carried by one side of the tie body and provided with a holding flange adapted to project over and engage one of the base flanges of a rail, said retaining plate extending over a portion of the rail support to hold the latter within the body, and a locking member arranged at the opposite side of the rail and adapted to engage the other base flange of the rail, said locking member being slidably mounted on the tie body.

3. In a railroad tie, the combination with a trough-shaped body, of a rail support arranged therein, a retaining plate carried by one side of the tie body and provided with a holding flange adapted to project over and engage one of the base flanges of a rail, said retaining plate extending over a portion of the rail support to hold the latter within the body, and a locking member arranged at the opposite side of the rail and also provided with a locking flange adapted to engage the other base flange of the rail, said retaining plate and locking member cooperating to hold the rail upon said support.

l. In railroac tie, the combination with a trough-shaped body, of a rail support ar ranged therein, a retaining plate carried by one side of the tie body and bent over the opposite side thereof, whereby to exten over one end of said rail support, said retaining plate being adapted to engage one of the base flanges of a rail, and a locking member arranged at the opposite side of the railandextending over the opposite end of said support, said locking member being adapted to engage the other base flange of the rail, said retaining plate and locking member coiiperating to hold the rail upon said support and also to protect the latter.

5. In a railroad tie, the combination with a trough-shaped body, of a rail support arranged therein, a retaining plate carried by one side of the tie body and extending over one end of said rail support, said retaining plate having a depending stop adapted to extend over the contiguous end of the rail support, said retaining plate being also adapted to engage one of the base flanges of a rail, and a locking member arranged at the opposite side of the rail and extending over the opposite end of'said support, said locking member having a depending stop extending over the end of the support contiguous to the locking member, the looking member being adapted to engage the other base flange of the rail and cooperating with the retaining plate to hold the rail upon said support and also to protect the latter.

6. In a railroad tie, the combination with a trough-shaped body, of a rail support arranged therein, a stationary retaining plate carried by the tie body and adapted to engage one of the base flanges of a rail, and a locking member slidably mounted at the opposite side of the rail and adapted to engage the other base flange of the rail, said retaining plate and locking member cooper ating to hold the rail upon said support.

7. In a railroad tie, the combination with a trouglrshaped body, of an elastic support for a rail, said support being arranged with in said body and snugly fitting between the sides thereof, a retaining element formed integral with one side of said body and extending to the other side thereof, a locking member associated with the body and spaced from said retaining element to, permit the positioning of the rail upon the elastic support, the retaining element and the locking member cooperating with the tie body to incase and protect the rail support, and means for maintaining the retaining element and the locking member in holding relation to the rail mounted on said support.

8. In a railroad tie, the combination with a trough-shaped body, of an elastic support for a rail, said support being arranged within said body and snugly fitting between the sides thereof, a retaining element formed integral with one side of said body and extending to the other side thereof, a locking member associated with the body and spaced from said retaining element to permit the positioning of the rail upon the elastic support, the retaining element and the locking member cooperating with the tie body to incase and protect the rail support, said retaining element and locking member being provided with depending stops which eX- tend over the ends of said support, and means for maintaining the retaining element and the locking member in holding relation to the rail mounted on said support.

9. In a railroad tie, the combination with a trough-sh aped body, of a plurality of elastic rail supports arranged in said body, a retaining plate formed integral with the tie body and arranged at a point adjacent to each of said supports, said retaining plate being bent over the contiguous end of the adjacent rail support to protect the same, a plurality of locking members also associated with the tie body, each'of said locking members being positioned at the side of a rail opposite to that at which each of said retaining plates is located, each of said locking members cooperating with the adjacent retaining plate to hold the contiguous rail upon the support upon which it is placed, and means for holding the retaining plates and locking members in engaged relation with the rails.

10. In a railroad tie, the combination with a trough-shaped body, of a plurality of elastic rail supports arranged in said body, a retaining plate formed integral with the tie body and arranged at a point adjacent to each of said supports, said retaining plate being bent over the contiguous end of the adjacent rail support to protect the same, a plurality of lockin members also associated with the tie b0 y, each of said locking members being positioned at the side of the rail opposite to that at which each of said retaining plates is located, each of looking members cooperating with the adjacent retaining plates to hold the contiguous rail upon the support upon which it is placed, means for holding the retaining plates and locking members in engaged relation with the rails, and fastening devices extending through the tie body adjacent to said looking members.

In testimony whereof I aifix my signature, in the presence of two witnesses.

HENRY A. SNQVV.

Witnesses HAROLD E. Horn. OLIVER DEAN.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, .D. C. 

